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How to read an academic article

How to read an academic article

These notes are intended to help you develop your approach to the way that you read an
academic article for study purposes, ie as part of your studies for your degree. The notes
should be used alongside the example article discussed,
Flamholtz, E. (1983) "Accounting, Budgeting and Control Systems in their Organizational
Context: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives", in Accounting, Organizations and
Society, vol. 8, no 2/3, pp.153-169 (17 pages).
This is available on the Web at http://www.mgtsystems.com/media/1476.pdf
You should download and print out a copy - it is not really appropriate to attempt to read
from a computer screen as you will need to move quickly through the article whilst also
following the discussion here.
Many students find difficulty in reading academic articles such as the one by Flamholtz. They
tend to complain that:
"it's too difficult"
"I lose track of what the author is saying"
"I get so far (1 or 2 pages) then find I can't make any sense of it"
"I find I have to keep going back over stuff I've just read because I can't see what the
author is saying"
"After a couple of pages I lose interest"
One major reason for such problems is that students attempt to read the article in the wrong
way. They try to read it as if it were a short story, or novel or newspaper report (eg
on a soccer match, or about the latest troubles of some celebrity or other). That is, they start
at the beginning and try to read through to the end. So:
Key point number 1: academic articles cannot be read effectively in the
same way as a short story, a novel or a newspaper report.

There are lots of printed materials that are not intended to be read through from beginning to end. The telephone directory is a clear
example. Another example is a technical manual eg for a computer program or a motor car. Although you might read a newspaper
article from start to finish, you probably won't read the newspaper itself in that way: you'll look for items that interest you, probably
jumping back and forth between items in the newspaper.
Each of these examples requires you to adopt the appropriate approach to reading, depending on the purpose for which the text was
produced and your own interests. As a student, you will probably be reading an academic article to be able to grasp what the author is
presenting as their key argument. (Note: an 'argument' in academic terms does not mean a 'quarrel' - it means the presentation by the
author of what they claim as valid knowledge, with that claim being supported by logical reasoning based either on theory or on
evidence, or on both.) All arguments have a structure, so you need to read in such a way that you can recognise the structure.

Key point 2: by adopting an appropriate approach to reading an academic

article, you can identity the structure of the author's argument both efficiently and
effectively.
'Efficiently' means that you do not waste your valuable time; 'effectively' means that you are
successful in understanding what you read.
Key point 3: reading an academic article is a skilful practice; that is, you get
better at it the more that you do it - but only if you practise effectively.

Top class athletes, sportswomen and sportsmen may have some innate aptitude, but they get to
be successful through constant training. The athletes that will compete in the next Olympics are
already in training, David Beckham is constantly practising kicking free kicks and penalties, so
that he maintains his ability to 'bend' or swerve the ball to go where he wants it to go whilst
misleading opponents. Venus and Serena Williams practise service shots, and various return
shots (after the Williams family moved to Florida, the 11-year old Venus was enrolled at the
Rick Macci tennis academy spending six hours a day, six days a week, for four years, to polish
the skills that would take her to the top of the game). But it is not just constant practice that is
necessary: their coaches and trainers advise them on how they are doing, so that they do not
practise 'bad habits'.
So it is with reading academic articles. If you read in an inappropriate manner, you are likely
to reinforce 'bad habits' - and because it will be a 'bad experience', you will tend to avoid

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reading, and so not become better at it. Not a recipe for success.
OK, let's have a go at working through an academic article in an appropriate way. To do this
we need to see how the author has structured the article. We shall use the article by Eric
Flamholtz that as indicated at the beginning of this page. If you have not already done so,
please download a copy and print it out now. When you have done that, click on the link
below to go to part 2.

Go on to part 2

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How to read an academic article - part 2

Let's now look at the article by Flamholtz. You will need to have the copy in front of
you, so that you can follow the steps.
First, whenever you start to read an academic article, remind yourself what journal
the article is taken from.
What is the journal from which the article is taken?
In this case, it is Accounting, Organizations and Society. Remember that this is an
academic journal, ie one that contains articles that are mainly read by academics.
They are intended to be read by academics engaged in theorising and
undertaking empirical work in issues to do with accounting, organizations and
society. The intended readers will already have considerable knowledge of this area.
Moreover, this is a high-ranking academic journal: you can be certain that articles
that get published in this journal have been judged to be of a very high standard. It is
probable that most articles submitted for possible publication will be rejected by the
journal: not because they are not very good, but because the journal receives too
many very high quality articles and can only publish a few.
So, as a student, you can expect to find articles in this journal difficult.
Reading them is hard work. And so it should be, if a degree is to be
considered an important indicator of a high level of education.
However, by adopting some key reading practices, you can make the task of reading
somewhat less difficult and more efficient. The following notes are intended to help
you to apply such practices.
But first let's dispel some common misunderstandings.
First, an academic journal should not be read in the same way as a letter, a
newspaper report, or a short story or novel. Do not just start at the beginning and try
to read through to the end.
Many students get frustrated when they start reading an article from the beginning,
then soon find that they can't understand what the author is saying. Even worse, some
students feel that they must lack the ability to study at this level. The problem is a
simple one: the article wasn't intended to be read in that way, so don't do it!
Secondly, the contents of an academic article cannot be grasped by a single reading.
You have to engage with it several times - but in different ways.
It's a bit like starting as a student at university. So many buildings, so many rooms! At
first you will probably just discover important rooms such as where enrolment takes
place, where the canteens are, the rooms where your classes take place, the library.
But over a few days and weeks, as you constantly move around the campus, you
gradually build up your knowledge of what is where. And it's not just university
buildings: there's the immediate area, houses, shops, roads, bus route, etc. You go to
some of these, and go past others, many times and at different times, and very
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quickly build up your knowledge of the University campus and its surrounding area.
Similarly, repeated engagement with a journal article helps you develop your
understanding of what the article presents (but it doesn't take months or even
weeks!).
Go now to part 3

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How to read an academic article - part 3

OK, time to start reading the article in an appropriate way.

Stage 1. Look at the title.

This often gives key information to indicate what the article discusses.
"Accounting, Budgeting and Control Systems in their Organizational Context: Theoretical and
Empirical Perspectives".
The first part of the title tells us that the article examines some key issues (accounting,
budgeting and control systems) in their organizational context. The second part tells us that
these are considered from both theoretical and empirical perspectives (points of view). Aha!
So we can assume that the article will have:
a) a theoretical discussion of issues to do with accounting, budgeting and control systems;
b) a presentation and discussion of empirical research on these issues, ie research within
some particular organisations.
As the title puts the word 'theoretical' before the word 'empirical', it seems safe to assume
that this indicates the ordering of material in the article. So we can produce, in our mind or
drawn on paper (or computer), a model or diagram of how the article is constructed:

theoretical discussion
followed by
presentation and discussion of empirical
findings

Of course, an article needs to have an introduction and a conclusion. That's standard writing
practice. In addition, academic articles normally have an abstract (short summary) at the
beginning and a listing of the literature cited in the text (called 'bibliography', or 'references').
Together with the title and author's details, we have what we might call the 'skeleton' of the
article:

Title
Author details
Abstract
Introduction
Theoretical discussion
Presentation and discussion of empirical
findings
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Conclusion
Bibliography

So far, we have just read the title. But we can now identify the above elements in the article.
Do so now with your own copy, which you should have downloaded and printed. (NB do not
make marks on any texts you are reading that you do not own. I recommend you mark
photocopies you have made of articles from journals, but do not make mark on the originals.)

Stage 2: Read the Abstract

OK, so far we've read the title and identified the basic structure of the article. Next, as there is
an abstract (that is, a short summary), let's read that. The first sentence says:
"This paper examines the relationship between accounting, budgeting and control in its
actual organizational context from a theoretical as well as an empirical perspective."
Yes, well we knew that from the title. But this first sentence of the abstract reminds us,
reinforces the message that this is what the article does.
Let's read the second sentence:
"It argues that the process of exercising control in an organization is significantly more
complex than conventional managerial accounting theory suggests."
Look at the first three words of that second sentence:
"It argues that ..."
Academic journals will only publish articles that, in some way, present what the authors claim
to be new ideas, research findings etc, or new ways of thinking about issues that are of current
concern. The words "it argues that" indicate the start of a summary of what the author is
claiming. So what does this author claim? Read the rest of the sentence:
"the process of exercising control in an organization is significantly more complex than
conventional managerial accounting theory suggests".
There we have it, in a nutshell.
Something is more complex than some theory suggests.
What is the something that is more complex?: the process of exercising control in an
organization.
What is the theory?: conventional managerial accounting theory.
Notice that we have two parts to the sentence: more...than. Where you see a two-part
sentence such as this, it is often useful to reverse the order and make appropriate changes to
keep the meaning.
so
conventional managerial accounting theory is too simple
[take the opposite of 'more complex' to keep the same meaning]
to explain how [ie the process of ] control is carried out [ie
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exercised] in an organization.
So we know that the article will be presenting some discussion of conventional managerial
accounting theory and argue that it is too simple to explain how control in organizations is
actually carried out.
Now read the next sentence:
"It also argues that budgeting and even an accounting system cannot be viewed as a
control system per se; rather, they must be seen as a part of a carefully designed total
system of organizational control."
OK, we get the 'it argues that ...' bit again, with just the word 'also' added in. So what does
the article argue?
Here again we get a two-part sentence. The parts are separated by a semi-colon ( ; ), and
the second part starts with the word 'rather'.
Look at the first part. It refers to
"budgeting and even an accounting system"
stating that these
"cannot be viewed as" something.
What can't they be viewed as? They can't be viewed as "a control system per se" ['per se' is
one of the Latin phrases that academics tend to use; it means 'in itself' or 'by itself']
So that's one part. Well if they can't be viewed [seen, regarded, treated] in that way, then how
should we view them?:
"as a part of a carefully designed total system of organizational control."
The phrase 'part of' refers back to the "budgeting and even an accounting system" that are
referred to in the first part of the sentence.
Now read again the final seven words, missing out the word 'of'. Note the rhythm:
carefully designed
total system
organizational control
Almost a poem. Dum de de dum, dum de de dum, dum de de dum. This is writing of a very
high order, as we might expect for this highly-rated academic journal.
The central pair, 'total system', is the central element. A total system, ie not merely a set of
parts.
A total system of (or for) what? Of organizational control: not just of part of the organization's
activities, but of the organization as whole.
That total system (of organizational control) must be 'carefully designed': not put together
casually, without much thought or planning. No, it has to be designed carefully.
OK, so far we've just read the title and three sentences of the abstract. But we already have a
good idea of the likely structure of the article, the main parts being a theoretical discussion,
which is followed by presentation and discussion of empirical studies. Also, we know the main
argument:
" conventional managerial accounting theory has too simple a view of the
way that control is carried out in organizations"
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" budgeting and accounting systems cannot be regarded as a control

system in itself"
" they should be viewed as just part of a total system of organisational
control that must be carefully designed"

Let's read on.

Go to part 4

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How to read an academic article - part 4

Now read the fourth sentence in the Abstract.
Notice that sentence starts with the word 'if'. Now a sentence that starts with 'if' is
always a two-part sentence: it has an 'if' part and a 'then'part. If a sentence starts with
'if', then you know there will be a 'then'.
OK, sometimes the sentence might start with some initial phrase: eg
'You can be sure that if the weather is dry tomorrow then the cricket match will
take place as planned.'
And sometimes the word 'then' is implied:
'If the weather is dry tomorrow, the cricket match will take place as planned'.
Sentences taking the form 'ifthen' are called conditionals. The situation or event
mentioned in the first part ('if') is a condition for the event or situation referred to in the
second ('then') part.
If you change the first part (making it 'if not'), then you must change the second part
in order to keep the same meaning:
'If the weather is not dry tomorrow, then the cricket match will not take place.'
Or, perhaps more simply:
'If it rains tomorrow, then the cricket match will be cancelled.'
Another way of stating a conditional in the negative is to use the word 'unless', eg
'Unless it rains tomorrow, the cricket match will take place'.
'Unless the weather is dry tomorrow, the cricket match will be cancelled.'
You may make use of these different ways of stating conditionals when summarising an
author's work in your own words.
Conditionals often form a key part of academic writing. They provide a general
statement about some aspect of the universe. In the physical sciences, conditionals
provide a way of stating scientific laws:
"if the pressure on a gas is increased, then its volume will decrease." (Boyle's Law)
"Unless acted upon by an unbalanced force, a body at rest stays at rest, and a moving
body continues moving at the same speed in the same straight line." (Newton's First Law
of Motion)
In the social sciences, it is more difficult, and some would argue that it's impossible, to
state laws in such a manner, but social scientists still attempt to express their arguments in
terms of conditionals. In this way they can express theories about aspects of the social
world that have general application. Notice that the example given above, about the
weather tomorrow and whether or not the cricket match will take place, is a specific form
of 'ifthen'. A general form might be:
"Unless the weather is dry on any day, cricket matches will be cancelled."
One way of expressing a general statement is in the form 'whenever', eg
"Whenever the weather is wet, cricket matches are cancelled."
So let's look at the fourth sentence, setting it out in the 'ifthen' structure:
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"If
the linkages between budgeting and an accounting measurement system and the
other prerequisites of a control system are not adequate,
then
the system may not fulfil its intended functions."
Notice that the first part is actually in the negative, an 'ifnot':
"if the linkages are not adequate...".
So this may be put in an 'unless' form:
"unless the linkages are adequate...".
Here, then, we have the general form of the theoretical argument being
presented.
Before we move on, try to express this in the 'unless' and 'whenever form'. Write
down some possible ways of expressing this.

When you are ready, go to part 5.

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How to read an academic article - part 5

So far, we've read the title and the first four sentences of the Abstract.
Now we know from the title and the first sentence of the abstract that the article also
discusses control systems from an empirical perspective. So, if we now move to the fifth
sentence in the abstract we see the reference to the empirical perspective:
"The validity and implications of these ideas are examined in the context of the
control system of three organizations."
Notice that the sentence starts a new paragraph, separating the theoretical discussion in the
first paragraph of the abstract from the reference to the empirical aspects in the second
sentence. Also notice that we are told how many organizations are involved in the
empirical discussion, ie three.
And what does the author claim he will do in the empirical discussion? He will do two
things:
1. examine the validity of the ideas presented in the theoretical part of the article; and
2. examine the implications of those ideas.
We can expect the three case studies to be presented clearly, so if we now turn to the
relevant section of the article, we can start to look for where they each appear. Turning to
the section which starts with the subheading (in capital letters):
ACCOUNTING, BUDGETNG AND CONTROL SYSTEMS IN THEIR
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
(on page 160), by quickly scanning we see that the second sentence begins:
"In this section, three studies of accounting and budgetary systems ..."
The next sentence begins:
"The first deals with ..." and goes on to refer to "a medium sized residential real
estate company in a metropolitan area of the United States". This study, we are told,
deals with 'a traditional system for budgetary control'
The following sentence starts:
"The second study...", and continues by stating that it concerns a small distributor of
industrial abrasives. Here, the study concerns the 'ability of an accounting system to
function as part of the overall organizational control system'.
Then the sentence after that starts:
"The final study ...", which turns out to be a very large US financial institution. Here the
study deals with an attempt to introduce a zero-based budgeting system.
At this point, you should make a brief note of the three case studies:
CS1: real estate company - traditional system of budgetary control
CS2: industrial abrasives - accounting system as part of organizational control system
CS3: finance institution - zero-based budgeting
I suggest using 'CS' as abbreviaion for 'case study', so that you will immediately recognise
it in your notes as a reference to a case study.

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Right, we're now on page 160, the eighth page of the article. But we've only read the
Abstract on the first page. We've jumped to page 160 because the fifth sentence in the
Abstract referred to 'three organizations'.
Also, we haven't read page 160; we've just quickly scanned the page, from the
subheading at the bottom of the left hand column, to find where the author refers to the
three organizations. He has been helpful by starting each of three sentences, one after the
other, with a phrase that indicates that the key information is in those sentences. Or,
rather, what the author has done is followed the normal practice for structuring
an academic article - and we can make use of that to find key information
quickly.
Whilst we are here, we can look further on to see where each case study organization is
discussed in more detail. Again, we can make use of the way that academic articles are
structure. Look just below where the author refers to the three organizations, on page 160.
Notice a subheading in italic letters:
"Conventional budgeting and control systems."
The next sentences starts:
"In this section we examine the study of a budgeting system if a medium-sized US
real estate company ..."
That's it! Case study number 1.
OK, don't read it now. Instead, find where the discussion of this organization ends. Scan
the subheadings in italic letters:
"Nature of research site", "Firm's culture, structure and budgeting prior to study",
and so on
until we find, on page 163:
"Implications".
This sounds like the end of the discussion of organization number 1. Sure enough, the next
subheading is
"Accounting and control systems", followed by
"Nature of the research site" (near top of right hand column on page 163)
That sounds like a different case study from the first one. Look at the two lines just above
the subheading:
"...we examine the role of accounting in the actual context of a US distributor of
industrial abrasives."
That's it!
Right, just as you found the subheading 'Implications' for the first case study, scan ahead
until you find a repeat. As you will see it's on page 165. That seems to suggest that the
following sub-section is the final part of the second case study.
OK, carry on looking forward, over the page and there ... about half way down the left
hand column on page 166 we see:
"Organizational culture and zero based budgeting as a control system."
Remember, the third case study was about 'zero based budgeting'. Here it is.
Right, don't read any more. Instead, let's go back to the Abstract, back to where we left it.
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Continue to part 6

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How to read an academic article - part 6

So let's recap. We've read the first paragraph of the Abstract. This had four sentences
briefly stating what was the main theoretical argument of the article.
Then we read the first sentence of the second paragraph, in which the author refers to
three organizations (ie 3 case studies). We quickly looked through the article to where the
discussion of the case studies began, as indicated by a subheading (page 160). These were
briefly introduced, so we discovered something about each organization. We then quickly
scanned forward to find out where each case study was discussed. We didn't read much just enough to get an overview.
Now we're back at the Abstract, at the second sentence of the second paragraph. As you
can see, it's the final sentence of the Abstract.
The final sentence of the abstract begins:
"The results suggest ..."
Here the author is indicating that he is going to tell us something that goes beyond what the
results demonstrate. That is, he is making a claim for a more general application of the
argument presented. So what does he suggest? Well, notice the phrase 'as well as' about
two-thirds of the way through the article. A two-parter again. First (the results suggest) the
need for:
"a different orientation of the role that accounting and budgeting play in the
control process".
Secondly (the results suggest) the need for:
"a broader concept of control itself."
Note here that we are not told in the sentence what the different orientation should be
different from. It is implied, of course. That is, the role should be different from that which
'conventional managerial accounting theory suggests', the phrase that appeared in
the second sentence of the abstract. Also note that the author talks of a 'broader concept
of control':
'broader' than what?
Again, by implication, he means the concept of control as adopted by 'conventional
managerial accounting theory'.
OK, from reading just the abstract, and looking in the article to find where certain items
referred to in the abstract are discussed in more details, we are already able to put some
'flesh' on the 'skeleton' of the article:
Title: "Accounting, Budgeting and Control Systems in their Organizational
Context: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives
Author details: author is an academic at UCLA
Abstract
Introduction
Theoretical discussion
"the process of exercising control in an organization is significantly more complex
than conventional managerial accounting theory suggests".
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budgeting and even an accounting system cannot be viewed as a control system

per se; rather, they must be seen as a part of a carefully designed total system of
organizational control."
"If
the linkages between budgeting and an accounting measurement system and the
other prerequisites of a control system are not adequate,
then
the system may not fulfil its intended functions."
Presentation and discussion of empirical findings
three case studies:
1) medium sized residential real estate company dealing with 'a traditional system
for budgetary control'
2) small distributor of industrial abrasives, concerning the 'ability of an
accounting system to function as part of the overall organizational control
system'.
3) very large US financial institution: - attempt to introduce a zero- based
budgeting system.
Conclusion
the need for:
"a different orientation of the role that accounting and budgeting play in the
control process".
"a broader concept of control itself."
Bibliography
All this from just a short amount of work. Read the title and think about it. Read the
Abstract and think about it. Quickly locate where key elements mentioned in the
Abstract are situated in the article.
About 5 minutes work maximum. Yes, it's taken longer than that to go through the
process on these webpages, but if you do it by yourself it's just a few minute's work to
get a good understanding of what the article is about and how it is structured.
Now, and only now, is it appropriate to start to read the article in more depth. In fact,
it may be worthwhile just pausing for a minute or two at this point. Take a sip of a drink;
make some brief notes; congratulate yourself.
Then, when you are ready, go on to the next stage

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How to read an academic article - part 7

Stage 3: Skim read whole article
So far, you will have gained quite a good understanding of what the article is about from
carrying out the previous stages. Now it's time to 'dig deeper'.
But that does not mean starting at the beginning and reading through to the end
(or to wherever you can get without giving up!).
What we now do is engage in skim reading.
Skim reading makes use of a normal convention for structuring writing: placing key
information at the beginning of a 'chunk' of text, then elaborating on that in the rest of that
'chunk'
So, if we locate the beginning and end of the various 'chunks', then just read the
beginning of each 'chunk', we will normally find we are reading the key information. Of
course, we shall be missing the detailed elaboration, but that is OK for our purposes at
this stage.
Academic writing will have two kinds of 'chunks'. The first kind of 'chunk' is the normal
paragraph structuring as found in novels and short stories, in newspaper and magazine
articles, and similar texts (but not in poetry, song lyrics, phone directories, train timetables
etc, of course). In non-fiction writing, it is most usual to put the key sentence of the
paragraph at beginning, then elaborate on that key sentence. State, then elaborate, is
the general rule. Because of that, we can usually obtain a good understanding of what an
author is saying by reading only the first sentence of paragraphs.
skim reading rule 1: read only the first sentence in each paragraph
The second type of 'chunk' consists of the sections of the article making up its structure.
These normally start with a heading, usually in different typeface from main text. In the
Flamholtz article you will see such sections headings are in capital letters, also called 'upper
case' lettering (or 'upper case font'). Sometimes, the sections of an article will have
subsections, again usually with a subheading in different typeface. In the Flamholtz article
subheading is in italic font, and in lower case (not capitals like the main section headings).
This is what is referred to the 'house style' of the journal. Academic journals do differ in
their house styles, but once you get used to the house style of a particular journal, you will
be able to recognise headings and subheadings at a glance.
As with paragraphs, the general rule for sections is 'state then elaborate'. So, immediately
after the section heading, the first paragraph will generally contain key information for that
section. This gives a slight exception to the first rule:
skim read rule 2: read fully the first paragraph of each section
There are, however, two sections that usually are particular useful in understanding the
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article. We saw these when considering the overall, or 'skeleton' structure: they are the first
section, the Introduction, and the final section, the Conclusion. Here, an author will
generally end the section with a paragraph that makes important points. Now we can
modify the previous rule:
skim read rule 3: read fully the first and last paragraph of the
Introduction and the Conclusion sections

OK, putting these together, we get the following set of steps:

1. Identify the section headings. In the Flamholtz article (and other articles in this
journal), the section headings are in capital letters. If your copy belongs to you,
mark these, eg using a highlighter pen on the headings. (NB do not mark copies
of texts that do not belong to you, especially if they are copies owned by the
University library).
2. Read the first paragraph of the article.
3. Read the first sentence only of each paragraph after the first, until you get to
the last paragraph of the Introduction section, which you should read fully.
4. Read the heading for the second section, then the first paragraph in full.
5. Read the first sentence only of each paragraph after the first, until you get to
the start of the next section.
6. Read the heading for the section, then the first paragraph in full.
7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 for each section until you get to the last (Conclusion)
section.
8. Read the section heading, then the first paragraph in full.
9. Read the first sentence only of each paragraph after the first, until you get to
the last paragraph.
10. Read the last paragraph in full.
When reading just the first sentence of each paragraph you may need to force yourself to
stop carrying on the reading . One way to do this is to quickly spot where the first full stop
occurs, and hold your finger near to it. With practice, you will be able to follow the steps
as a normal way of reading.
By now, you have read the Abstract and gained a good overview of the article. You found
the section where the three case studies are discussed. You built up the basic structure of
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the article, and identified the main argument. You have further developed your
understanding of the article by skim reading. And all of this has probably taken less time
than trying to read fully, word for word, less than a third of the article. So far, so good.
As you skim read through the article, you will have noticed that the text is interrupted by a
set of diagrams. These are indicated by the abbreviation 'Fig.', short for 'figure'. Academic
articles often have such diagrams or figures; they also often have tables, sometimes
containing just text, often containing text and numbers. Diagrams, or figures, are usually
intended to display an idea in a way that is easier to see and grasp than is possible with
text. So now we need to consider these.
Continue to next page

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How to read an academic article - part 8

OK, so having skim read, now let's look at the diagrams. Find the first one. It's
labelled:
'Fig. 1 Schematic representation of an organizational control system'
Now we know that the article is about 'control systems'. That phrase is included in
the title. And the Abstract indicated that the article argues that "that budgeting
and even an accounting system cannot be viewed as a control system per se;
rather, they must be seen as a part of a carefully designed total system of
organizational control." (third sentence of Abstract).
So, here we have a figure that is called a 'schematic representation of an
organizational control system'. This should enable you to get a good grasp of
what the figure is intended to indicate. Notice the inner circle ('core control
system'), enclosed within another circle ('Organizational structure'), then another
('Organizational culture'), all contained within a square ('Organizational
environment'). Having given some thought to what this might be saying, now find
the part of the article which discussed the figure.
You can normally expect to find the relevant text nearby and usually before the
figure. So quickly skim back until you find the words 'Figure 1' or 'Fig. 1'. It comes
at the beginning of the section headed 'A Meta-Perspective of Control Systems'.
When you have found the text, read the paragraph, or paragraphs, that discuss
the figure.
Then do the same for the other figures, each time stopping to think about what the
figure might mean, based on what you already know about the article, before
reading the relevant paragraph or paragraphs.
Once you have followed these steps, you should have a good understanding of the
article. Of course, the level of your understanding will be affected by your previous
knowledge of this subject. But as this develops, so will your ability to read academic
articles quickly.
When you have read the article in this way, you may then want to read it fully. You
should attempt this only when you have gained an understanding of the
structure and the content from the method described.
In fact, you may want to just focus on certain sections, or subsections, where some
information is presented that you find useful, or where there is a key element of the
argument that you want to focus on.
I hope that you have found these notes useful. I'd very much like to hear your
comments: mail to me at leonard.holmes@roehampton.ac.uk

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